Winter Haven Man Stabbed During Attempted Burglary, Altercation

A 34-year old Winter Haven man who police said broke into an apartment Monday night and attacked two residents was stabbed himself and now is in critical condition at a local hospital.

By BEN BRASCHTHE LEDGER

WINTER HAVEN | A 34-year old Winter Haven man who police said broke into an apartment Monday night and attacked two residents was stabbed himself and now is in critical condition at a local hospital. Tobarus Anthony Johnson, 180 Central Ave. E., faces charges of armed burglary with an assault or battery, said Erica Thomas, a Winter Haven Police Department spokeswoman.Police said Thursday afternoon that Johnson's condition has improved. He is expected to be moved to the Polk County Jail, where he'll be held on bail.Janet Hunt, 51, was in the bedroom of her apartment at 222 Sixth St. SW using her laptop at 8:30 p.m. when a man she did not know lunged at her, grabbed her purse and started hitting her, according to a police arrest report.When Hunt's 22-year-old son, David Hunt, heard his mother screaming, he ran from an adjacent room and saw a man kicking and punching his mother, the report said. The man moved toward David Hunt, throwing objects at him.David Hunt armed himself with a kitchen knife and during the ensuing fight slashed at and stabbed the intruder, police said. At one point during the fight, the intruder grabbed the knife and tried to stab David Hunt but did not succeed, the report said.The intruder tried to escape through the front door, but during the altercation Janet Hunt had fallen in the way of the door. The intruder broke a kitchen window and dove through it, Thomas said. David Hunt left the apartment through a bathroom window and summoned neighbors to help him and his mother.Several neighbors chased the intruder, who ran southeast, until he collapsed three blocks later, near Owl Now Urgent Care, 550 Pope Ave. NW, Thomas said.When medics treated Johnson, she said, they found an ice pick in his pants.Johnson was taken to an undisclosed local hospital in critical condition with cuts to his torso, head and leg, Thomas said.A police detective who investigated the incident said in an arrest affidavit that David Hunt acted in self-defense.Janet Hunt and David Hunt suffered minor bruises and abrasions and did not require medical attention, the arrest affidavit said.Johnson has previously been charged with burglary, grant theft and forgery, Thomas said. Police said they found property gathered from the apartment near the front door, including prescription medication, credit cards and an EBT card.

[ Ben Brasch can be reached at ben.brasch@theledger.com or 863-802-7590. Follow Ben on Twitter @ben_brasch. ]